Transformed By Truth

Stormy Seas

This month has been a rough one for me, so I wanted to share this with those who might currently be navigating through a stormy sea. In Luke 8:22-25, Jesus and the disciples are travelling by boat when they encounter a storm. Everyone on the boat is scared and fears shipwreck, but when they woke Jesus, He rebuked the wind and waves, and all was well. In Matthew 14:22-33, again, the disciples are on a boat. This time, Jesus is walking toward them while they are at sea, and He tells Peter to come to Him. As Peter begins walking, he becomes frightened and takes his focus off Jesus, starting to worry about the wind. At this moment, he begins to sink, and he calls out to Jesus. The Bible says IMMEDIATELY, Jesus reached out to him, and when they returned to the boat, the winds calmed. I know from experience how difficult it can be to go through a storm. There is a vast amount of fear and uncertainty that comes with it. But Jesus can calm EVERY storm, and when we keep our focus on Jesus, He provides IMMEDIATE assistance. God brought us here because we all have a PURPOSE. Is it going to be a walk in the park? I doubt it. But what I know for sure is that Jesus is with us through every storm, and sunny days wouldn’t be special if it weren’t for rain. I love you all. God bless!

Matthew 14:27-31 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

6/20/2025

Praise the Lord! I am overflowing with joy and gratitude this morning! So many things in my life can only be explained by the grace and love of God! So many things in this life are not of my doing. So many gifts I don’t deserve. Protection. Guidance. Mercy. Love. Elements of life that I wasn’t willing to show myself, Jesus was there to reveal to me at every step! The love of Jesus is AMAZING and UNFATHOMABLE!!!

1 John 4:9-11 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.

Chameleon

I used to take pride in being a chameleon. To me, that meant I could fit into any environment with any group of people. I viewed being a chameleon as a skill. Regardless of my surroundings, I could adapt and survive. Then God revealed to me that a chameleon uses camouflage to hide from enemies, blend into its surroundings, and avoid detection. These are the OPPOSITE of who I am called to be. Matthew 5:14-16 says we are the light of the world—a city set on a hill that cannot be hidden. We are not called to blend into the background. We are not called to hide our faith or be quiet about our testimony. The world is not silent. The world doesn’t hide itself or try to blend in with the background. This idea is straight from the pit of hell and rooted in fear. It’s a lie the enemy used to get me to neglect becoming the man God called me to be—a man filled with the light and love of our Heavenly Father. The enemy has manipulated so many men into believing they must change who they are to make the world comfortable, when that is not the case. The world doesn’t change to cater to us. Let God’s light shine through you, so that you can lead other men who are engulfed in darkness to the peace, warmth, and comfort of God’s love.

Matthew 5:14-16 You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Repent

μετανοέω metanoeō repent

The Greek word for “repent” is μετανοέω (metanoeō). Repentance is not just an apology. It is much bigger than that. Scripture tells us we are made new in Christ. Romans 2:12 calls for the TRANSFORMATION of our minds, not an empty apology for our sin. Repentance calls for a shift in one’s thought process and mentality. Behaviors that we once reveled in are now despicable in our eyes. When faced with repentance, numerous hurdles often arise. Behaviors that we once felt were pivotal to our personality now bring feelings of discomfort. Habits that have been formed over time must now come to an end. Excuses will form. Difficulty will increase, and turning from old habits will seem impossible. On the cross, Christ’s flesh did not want to endure the pain and torture He knew was coming. Luke 22:41-43 And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. However, our strength comes from knowing that God’s will for us is always for our good and His glory. Yes, true repentance is challenging, but remind yourself how beneficial it would be to quit smoking. How much better would you feel if you lost ten pounds or started selecting healthier meal options? God calls us to repent and come to Him out of love for us. Our love of the flesh blinds us to God’s love and causes our perspective to be focused solely on the immense difficulty of repentance. However, I challenge you to shift your thinking and remember all that Christ endured so that we may gain eternity and overcome death. God Bless! 🙏🏿✌🏿💙💪🏿

Luke 13:1-5 There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

Get Out Of Your Way

When people would ask how I had been after not seeing me for a while, I often blamed life, the universe, or God for my hardships. I would respond with something like, “Life hasn’t been kind,” or I would blame God for being so hard on me. There was always something preventing me from achieving success or reaching the path God created for me. It was never my fault. It was always an external obstacle. It wasn’t the decisions I made, the minimal effort I applied, or my mindset. God had it out for me, and the universe was against me. As I began to walk with Christ, God revealed to me that the only thing stopping me was me. The universe wasn’t out to get me, life was being life, and God’s love is steadfast and eternal. My mindset and the things I was telling myself were a fallacy. I chose to put effort into living in sin instead of walking with Christ. I was blocking my blessings. God continued to bless me and keep me safe. But my eventual obedience led to LIFE, not just survival. Getting out of my own way allowed me to LIVE, not just EXIST. You know what you want. You know who God has called you to be. Get out of your way and let God lead you to a life filled with purpose, power, and love. God Bless!

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

How Well Do YOU Know YOU?

How much do you know about yourself? How well do YOU know YOU? As Christ led me in my recovery, He showed me that this journey isn’t about recovery, but about discovery. Discovering who He created me to be and who I believe I am. We live in a culture overly obsessed with other people. What other people are doing. What other people believe. What other people drive. We find entertainment in watching other people live, hence the term reality television. Combine this with life lifing, and we unknowingly lose sight of who WE are, what WE enjoy, and who WE were created to be. Losing sight of this can cause us to drift through life. Aimlessly searching for a destination, we are not aware of. Yet we spend our time watching others achieve goals and live life. We can tell you all the details about the latest draft pick or the life story of our favorite UFC fighter, but we can’t give you a list of things we want to achieve in a year or tell you what we like to do in our free time. So again I ask you, how well do YOU know YOU, and I challenge you to spend less time watching other people live their lives, and more time becoming the man Christ called you to be. God Bless. 🙏🏿✌🏿💙💪🏿

Matthew 7:3-5 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

We Make Time

We make time to binge-watch the newest Netflix series. We make time to eat out and lounge around. We make time to play video games. We make plenty of time for our flesh, but how much time do we make for God? God created time for US. How much time are we creating for HIM? We find every reason possible to complain. We search for reasons to celebrate life and enjoy leisure. How often are we searching for reasons to worship and praise the creator of the universe and giver of life? We make time for the things we value, so what does how much time you make for God say about how much you value your relationship with Him? As we start the day, remember to make time for God. Start your day with worship and prayer. If you have to wake up earlier to spend time in prayer, do it. Think about all Christ sacrificed. Remember EVERYTHING Jesus went through on the cross, and let that motivate you. He endured pain and torture for OUR FORGIVENESS. I don’t think waking up thirty minutes earlier is too much to ask. 🙏🏿✌🏿💙💪🏿 God Bless.

Difficult Questions

When I was in rehab, I had to ask myself a gang of questions. Two of the most difficult were “Do I want things to be different?” and “Am I willing to do what it takes to get a different result?” For years, I complained about my life and how things were going for me. I always blamed life, the universe, and eventually God. But I never took any responsibility for where I was and what I was experiencing. My perspective changed in treatment when I heard two statements. To get something you’ve never had, you must do something you’ve never done, and if you want something different, do something different. Those two simple yet profound statements helped me change how I looked at things and take accountability. I realized that I had to take responsibility for the choices that led me to where I was, and if I wanted a different result, I had to take different actions. In theory, this sounds simple. But in reality, it is challenging. The activities I engaged in daily were practiced for an extensive period. This meant I had to change two decades of detrimental habits and behaviors, but if I wanted to make a change and find freedom from drugs, it was necessary. This is what change requires. You must ask yourself simple yet tough questions. It is easy to say we want change. We can pray that God will change our hearts and help us break bad habits. But we must also realize that it comes with action that can be difficult to take. When this challenge presents itself, remember the sacrifice Christ made on the cross, and find strength in the power that God gives you. God Bless.

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Walking WITH Christ

God is working on you, but are you working on yourself? We say God is working on us, but we must also work on ourselves. God is not responsible for our bad habits or limiting beliefs. We have been lazy and practicing bad nutritional habits, not God. Yes, God is most definitely working on us, but we must also put in some work. We are on a walk WITH Christ. This does not mean giving our life to Christ omits us from responsibility or effort. We must let go of the things causing hardship and temptation. We must rid ourselves of a judgmental and bitter spirit. We must match the effort we request from Christ. He removed the scales so we could see the sin we were living in. Our responsibility is to put in the work required to walk in righteousness. God Bless.

Typing

I don’t expect people to understand or empathize with what we deal with as addicts in recovery. How could they? But I wish people understood the difficulty recovery can add to things. My brain tells me to use as soon as things don’t go as planned or there is any frustration. I have much more control now, but it still happens and I still have to deal with it on top of life. Life in itself is a lot to handle. Add working a recovery program with not knowing what is coming next, and you get anxiety on top of anxiety. I could always take the easy route. That would get me nowhere. Well, it would get me somewhere. Dead.

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change—the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.